The mood board for Sally LaPointe’s pre-fall collection was filled with pictures of her house, sportif Nike slides, a leather jacket, gold jewelry, her favorite jewelry store [NewTop Jewelry in Chinatown], etc. The reasoning? A few of her favorite things.
“Literally the inspiration was, ‘What do I want to wear?’ A lot of people come to and know of our brand for statement pieces, which is amazing and will never go away, but I think what they don’t see at first is a little bit of the more lifestyle pieces,” LaPointe said during a preview. To push the lifestyle side of her business — which has been growing under the radar for quite some time — she decided to base her latest collection around items that are essentially her “jam.”
The idea resulted in denim that comes bleach-splattered in black and white, or distressed in cream (a great new take on her downtown utility look); a smattering of shimmering party looks in metallic net, square sequin and iridescent pailettes, and a pair of classic black trousers that are machine washable, wrinkle-free viscose and come at a sharper price-point — which was another emphasis of the season.
“I’m really excited about jersey,” LaPointe said, pointing out a cacao-hued jersey caped top with matching draped pants. While the designer certainly continues to offer high-end statement pieces, she utilized pre-fall to mix in more transitional, price-friendly layers like bodysuits, ribbed tanks with matching slouched shrugs, lightweight utility pants and snake-printed mesh separates.
“It felt like a direct reflection of myself and my closet,” LaPointe said, adding that she also styled her pre-fall look book for the first time to display the versatility of the garments, such as a bright lotus pink nubby sweater with a stretch sequin viscose miniskirt (a riff on the custom one she designed for Beyoncé during her Renaissance World Tour) and sportif slides. Because why not have fun with it?
Speaking of fun, the designer also designed her first summer capsule, upping her annual collection count to seven. While the line is yet to be released (set to drop just before pre-fall lands in stores), expect plenty of vibrant, playful, sexy, shimmering styles for summer beach and pool parties.
